Posted on 10/20/2009 2:32:26 PM PDT by backtothestreets
WASHINGTON (AFP) – Even when executions are not carried out, the death penalty costs US states hundreds of millions of dollars a year, depleting budgets in the midst of economic crisis, a study released Tuesday found.
"It is doubtful in today's economic climate that any legislature would introduce the death penalty if faced with the reality that each execution would cost taxpayers 25 million dollars, or that the state might spend more than 100 million dollars over several years and produce few or no executions," argued Richard Dieter, director of the Death Penalty Information Center and the report's author.
"Surely there are more pressing needs deserving funding," he wrote, noting that execution was rated among the least effective crime deterrents.
(Excerpt) Read more at news.yahoo.com ...
Actually implementing the death penalty would save millions. These killers live better on death row then the families they killed.
We need to put in a death penalty fast-track.
$100mm is a drop in the bucket compared to Obama’s family travel and constant campaigning and fundraising at taxpayers expense, and put to a much better use.
Putting a bullet in every person convicted of murder, rape, and molestation of children instead of providing shelter and meals every day would too.
Legal reform that keeps spcial interest groups from stonewalling executions would save millions.
Carrying them out could save a bunch too...
Idiots. If they wanted a “more effective” deterrent, then they might support torture or castration. This is not about deterrence, it’s about moral relativism.
If they would simply carry out the sentences in a timely fashion, hundreds of millions would be saved.
Save criminals but kill grandma on Ocare. Charming.
Nope...put them against the wall 20 minutes after the trial and you will have justice. God will sort them out if there is a mistake.....
The conjecture of this supposed “study” goes beyond the pale. How myriad legal machinations and ploys for a few years outweighs to cost of housing and feeding murderers is a puzzle. The only good thing I see in deleting the death penalty is that another effing lawyer will have to go chase ambulances instead of camping out at prison electric chairs. The benefit of frying, however, in my mind far outweighs the downside of a potential eventual release of a madman. MARK MY WORDS....OBAMA WILL EVENTUALLY RELEASE CHARLES MANSON!
Yep. In Texas they stay on death row for about 5 years. In Tennessee, they stay on death row until they die of natural causes. Who has the greatest cost?
Some things are worth paying for.
It’s just one shocking study or report after another. Now it turns out an organization that opposes the death penalty says we could save tons of cash by doing away with it. We know how those death row feel about it, let’s get the take from the families of victims.
I agree it’s a most effective deterrent, but even if it were shown incontrovertibly that it had absolutely NO deterrent effect whatsoever, I would still support it. After all, it’s not called capital deterrent, it’s called capital punishment. If it serves as a deterrent then just that much better. Serendipity is always a nice surprise!
No death row for murderers and rapists, but death panels for those over 65.
No, this is the damnable lie supported by those who wish to see a breakdown of our society.
What costs money, is the ACLU and an absolute army of other groups that simply refuse to allow justice to take it's natural course.
I approve of some appeals, so don't get me wrong. I don't support endless delays of justice for anything more than five years. These twenty and thirty year delays in the executions that have been deemed justified, are a travesty of justice.
We actually have hearings for people like Charles Manson and Sirhan Sirhan too. Should they be let go or not? Well, we could claim millions in costs to the state to justify letting them lose too. No. Let the executions begin. The victims families deserve to see justice carried out.
Funny, the only fast tracked death penalty case in the past quarter century was Tim McVeigh.
I’d be willing to give up the death penalty if they’d give up on abortion.
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